THE Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) has fully endorsed the Guinness Street Football Challenge and believes it can only help in developing the sport locally.

Garth Savoury, the JFF marketing director, told the Jamaica Observer that football of all kind is for everybody and the federation is behind it totally.

“In terms of development, the JFF believes that football is for everyone. Therefore, by putting on this competition, Guinness is helping with the development of football because the players are now getting a chance to play against other talented young men from across the island,” said Savoury.

Jamaica’s best street or scrimmage footballers are expected to battle when the Guinness Street Football Challenge kicks off later this month. Teams from across the country will vie for the chance to become national champions and represent the country at the regional finals to be held in Jamaica in June.

“One of the things the JFF likes about the Guinness street football competition is that it heavily involves the communities. It also gives the players who were otherwise not seen a chance to showcase talent on a national level, since we are doing the 14 parishes,” Savoury pointed out.

He continued: “But not only that, the winner of this competition will go to the Caribbean finals. So it not only has local, but a regional aspect to it.”

The launch of the competition will be held on Tuesday, February 17, at Norma’s Pub at 98 Waltam Park Road where an exhibition four-a-side game will be played.

Teams will play on a knock-out basis until a parish champion is crowned. From there, the respective parish champions will face each other on the weekend of June 13 to determine which will emerge national champions.

Jamaica’s champion team will pit its skills against the Caribbean’s best teams in the Regional Finals set to take place on the weekend of June 20.

In last year’s tournament held in Trinidad, teams battled for a winner’s prize of US$4,000. The Guinness Street Football Challenge is in its fourth year, but will be played in Jamaica for the very first time.

Jamaica’s champion team will face other opponents from other Caribbean nations, including Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados, Guyana, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Lucia, Antigua/Barbuda, St Kitts, Dominica and newcomers Haiti.

Jamaica are the senior Caribbean Football Union champion and will be hoping to add this Street Football title as they continue their dominance of the region.

— Howard Walker